Look at this fabulous job my husband did painting this vintage dresser!
Yup, I give him credit. I went into this project knowing darn well it was mine to do and my guy stepped right in. He loved the look of this dresser just as much as I did. The uniqueness of this dresser totally caught my eye. It was screaming my name and better yet it was screaming to be painted black. As soon as we loaded it home, Drew asked “What colour are we going with this time?” I knew it needed to be black. The antique look of the black and gold handles. I wanted the colour to keep it’s historic look and really make it pop.
So black it was! Our first time painting anything black and we literally surprised ourselves with this colour. hahaha. I found this baby on Facebook Marketplace for $85. Facebook Marketplace always doing me a solid! Its light and solid. Furniture that was built to last. I have such a love for vintage furniture, the details always get me so excited and this one had many beautiful details.
BEFORE
A couple of things we grabbed of course…
- Home Hardware Cabinet and Furniture paint Black
- Paint Brushes
- Paint Tape
- Coaster Protectors
- Liner For The Drawers
- Top Coat/Sealer
- Drawer Handles (we decided to keep the original, they are such great hardware we just couldn’t replace them)
How To:
- First off we got it home. Washed it down really nice and Drew started to give it a light sanding.
- Then taping off around the drawers to protect it.
- No priming and just started painting. The black covered so nicely so he did do two coats. Second one being lighter.
- Sealed it with a clear top coat sealing the top.
- Then we placed 4 coaster to the bottom of each leg. Preventing it from scratching our floors.
- This part isn’t always necessary but it can be nice to lay down a sticky liner on the inside of the drawers depending on the condition of them or it you simply want to protect from any damage.
Thats it! Topped with AJR Design Florals for that added touch. Literally an easy couple hour project to work on. This took us an afternoon. Nothing major, waiting an hour or two in between coats. Any questions please feel free to shoot them my way! Totally encourage you to recycle vintage furniture in new creative ways. This is a passion project on the side that I love to do when the time and best piece comes to me!
BEFORE
Tips Furbishing Furniture
- Facebook Marketplace and thrift stores will be the best spots to look for vintage furniture and don’t be nervous to do a little wheeling and dealing!
- Signs to know if it’s vintage, on the side of the drawer will be “Dove Tails” this is how they used to install furniture back in the day to keep it really sturdy. You’ll see it as soon as you open the drawer and it looks kind of like a puzzle insert.
- Make sure it’s in somewhat decent shape. I mean if you feel eager enough to fill in cracks by all means go for it! But the better the quality shape it’s in the easier it will be to refurbish.
- Check the hardware. Some pieces might have the original and some might not. So if not you can always buy new ones. But something about the original hardware you just can’t find anymore.
- Painting, go with your gut colour on what it feels like it should be painted. It sounds silly but with the extra details on this one, I really wanted to make those details pop and I had to go with black.
- Details, the more the better and prettier.
- Another way to find out the age of the piece is to look inside or around, maybe even under for a stamp or certificate attached to it. This one didn’t have any of that on it. So I’m not entirely sure the date. But I could tell it was an older piece with the dovetails cut out and the original hardware.
- With paint being as amazing as it is today, a light sand and no primer works just as well. But don’t forget to seal to protect from scratching!
Keisha Lynne, xx